The expert committee set up by the government to revise the National Policy on Marine Fisheries has recommended the repeal of the Letter of Permit (LoP) scheme for foreign vessels. The second draft of the revised policy to be published shortly observes that after 14 years of operation, the LoP scheme has not had the expected impact in the development of the deep sea fishing sector. The draft document has proposed a new development scheme based on equipping traditional fishermen for deep sea fishing. The proposal involves on-board training to enhance the capabilities and skills of domestic fishermen and providing them with financial assistance to procure or modify vessels for deep sea fishing operations. Repeal of the LoP scheme was a long-standing demand of the fishermen community which felt that it had allowed foreign fishing vessels to plunder India’s marine wealth. The draft document moots participatory management or co-management of fisheries and regulatory mechanisms to limit fleet size, fishing days, area of operation, engine power, size of fishing gear, minimum mesh size and minimum legal size. It proposes fleet plan maps and fisheries management areas to contain resource depletion.
2016, The Hindu